What Can NDIS Social, Economic and Community Participation Funding Be Used For?

From 1 October 2026, some NDIS participants will start to see changes to their Social, Economic and Community Participation funding when a new plan is approved or their plan is reassessed.

But with so much attention on funding reductions, there is a more practical question worth answering: What can Social, Economic and Community Participation funding actually be used for?

The answer is broader than simply having a support worker take you out. Depending on your plan, goals and disability-related needs, this funding can help you get involved in everyday community life, enjoy social and recreational activities, meet people and build greater independence.

What Can Social, Economic and Community Participation Support Look Like?

Social and community participation funding can be used for disability-related support that helps you take part in everyday community, social and recreational activities. This may include a support worker helping you participate in an activity, interact with other people, or do things that you would otherwise find difficult because of your disability.

Everyday examples may include:

• going shopping

• visiting the local library

• attending a community event or local group

• joining a hobby or craft activity

• going swimming, to the gym or taking part in sport

• meeting friends or taking part in other social activities

• attending recreational activities

• volunteering or gaining work experience

  
  

The type of support needed can look very different from one participant to another. One person may only need help getting to an activity and settling in, while another may need support throughout the activity with communication, mobility, personal care or staying safe.

This is why the activity itself is only part of the picture. What matters is the additional support you need because of your disability to take part.

So, for example, if your disability means you cannot safely go swimming on your own, funding may be available for a support worker to help you access the pool and participate. It is not simply funding for a day out.

It Can Also Be About Building Independence

For some participants, part of the purpose is to build the confidence and skills to do more independently over time. The NDIS specifically recognises increasing independence as part of social and community participation supports.

Take grocery shopping as a simple example.

A participant may initially need a support worker to help plan the trip, travel to the shops, find what they need, communicate with staff and complete their shopping.

As their confidence and skills develop, the level of help they need may change.

The same idea can apply to social activities. Someone who feels overwhelmed in unfamiliar social settings may initially need more support to join a local group, communicate with others and become familiar with the environment. Over time, they may become more comfortable participating with less assistance.

That is very different from simply saying, “a support worker takes me shopping”. The support has a purpose: helping the participant take part in ordinary community life in a way that is safe, meaningful and as independent as possible.

A Joystep example

One participant might start with a fairly simple weekly routine — going to the shops, having lunch out and perhaps stopping somewhere they enjoy along the way.

But those few hours can serve a much bigger purpose. The participant is making choices about where to go, interacting with people in the community, managing purchases and gradually becoming more confident outside the home.

Another participant may have completely different goals and use their support to attend exercise, a social group or another regular community activity.

Does the NDIS Pay for the Activity Itself?

A simple way to think about it is that the NDIS may fund the extra support you need because of your disability to take part in an activity, but not the ordinary cost of the activity itself.

For example, if you need a support worker to help you participate at the gym, the disability-related support may be funded, but the gym membership would normally be your own expense.

Similarly, if you need support to attend a recreational outing, such as going to the movies, the support worker may be funded, while you would normally pay for your own ticket or entry fee.

What the NDIS may fund will always depend on your disability-related support needs, your individual plan and the NDIS funding rules.

If you need help understanding your new NDIS plan or how your Social and Community Participation funding can be used, Joystep is here to help.